WEB NEWS ALERT:
The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, a component of
the National Institutes of Health, said today that few eligible stroke
patients receive treatments that can significantly reduce disability and
save lives.
"Two things need to happen in order to ensure that more stroke patients
benefit from treatments that dissolve blood clots in the brain," said John
R. Marler, MD, associate director for clinical trials at NINDS. "First,
people at risk for stroke and the people around them must know the signs of
stroke. Then, they must call 911 and get to a hospital quickly. The
sooner they begin receiving treatment, the better their chances for a
complete recovery."
A list of the signs of stroke and a complete news release follow. We
encourage you to post this important information on your Web site as a
service to the public.
For additional information please contact Lauren Shaham at (202) 452- 9483.
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NIH News Release
National Institutes of Health
National Institute of
Neurological Disorders and Stroke
For immediate release: May 17, 2000
For more information:
Margo Warren or Paul Girolami, 301-496-5751
NIH EXPERTS SAY FEW ELIGIBLE STROKE PATIENTS RECEIVE TREATMENTS THAT SAVE
LIVES AND REDUCES DISABILITY
The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, a component
of the National Institutes of Health, said today that few eligible stroke
patients receive treatments that can significantly reduce disability and
save lives.
Gerald D. Fischbach, MD, director of NINDS, said that nearly five years
after a NINDS clinical trial found that clot busting treatments can reduce
or even reverse the symptoms of ischemic stroke, the treatment's promise
is unfulfilled. The vast majority of patients who might benefit from it
do not receive it.
"Again and again we see in research studies that patients do not recognize
symptoms as stroke and get to the hospital in time," Dr. Fischbach said.
"This is a crisis of under-utilization that causes unnecessary disability
and costs millions extra in health care costs."
Patients who suffer from ischemic strokes, those that cause blood clots in
the brain, have the most potential of receiving treatments that can reduce
deaths and disability. One of the most effective ischemic stroke
treatments is tissue plasminogen activator (t-PA). Nearly five years ago,
a NINDS clinical trial found that patients who received t-PA treatment
within three hours of their initial stroke symptoms were at least 30
percent more likely than untreated patients to recover from their stroke
with little or no disability after three months.
Currently, there is no official national estimate of the percentage of
ischemic stroke patients who receive thrombolytic treatments. However,
numerous research studies in individual communities have concluded that
about 10 percent or less of eligible stroke patients receive t-PA or other
treatments, primarily because they arrive at the hospital after the
three-hour window has closed. For example, a Cleveland-area study
published in the March 1, 2000, issue of the Journal of the American
Medical Association, found that "the rate of IV t-PA use among hospitals
varied from 0 percent to 10.2 percent of stroke admissions." Katzan,
et.al., Use of Tissue-Type Plasminogen Activator for Acute Ischemic
Stroke: The Cleveland Area Experience. JAMA, March 1, 2000. Vol 283, No.
9. Pp. 1151-1158.
"Two things need to happen in order to ensure that more stroke patients
benefit from treatments that dissolve blood clots in the brain," said John
R. Marler, MD, associate director for clinical trials at NINDS. "First,
people at risk for stroke and the people around them must know the signs
of stroke. Then, they must call 911 and get to a hospital quickly. The
sooner they begin receiving treatment, the better their chances for a
complete recovery."
The main symptoms of stroke are:
Sudden numbness or weakness of face, arm or leg ? especially on one
side of the body
Sudden confusion or trouble speaking or understanding
Sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes
Sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination.
Sudden severe headache with no known cause
During Stroke Awareness Month in May, NINDS researchers encourage people
at risk for stroke and their family members, friends and caregivers to
learn the signs of stroke. In many cases, because stroke attacks the
brain, a person experiencing stroke will not realize a stroke is
occurring. But the people around them can recognize the symptoms and act
fast. Candidates can receive certain stroke therapies only if they can
verify the onset of their symptoms to within three hours of arriving at
the hospital.
"Stroke is a condition that is easy to see," said Dr. Marler. "There are
few other medical conditions that come on so suddenly and that are so
noticeable to a bystander. Many people avoid stroke because they treat
their high blood pressure and stop smoking. But of those who do have
strokes, few receive treatment."
For more information on stroke, consumers can visit the NINDS web site at
www.ninds.nih.gov, or they can call 877-562-3434 to receive a brochure on
stroke.
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